Chapter 10

Father Mateo tried his best to extinguish the fire, but the flames only grew stronger despite his efforts.

“Isabelle! What have you done? Did you make a deal with the devil?”

“The saints wouldn’t have let me live if that were true.”

Isabelle was well aware of her skill level. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t create a flame that was bigger than the fingernail on her pinky. However, it could cause fatal injuries, even if it was just a graze. Her original plan had been to send several small sparks toward the priest.

Usually, it would flicker for a moment and then disappear, so why is it getting stronger? It was strange. What should have been a few sparks had grown into a huge fire that was now devouring Father Mateo alive. The priest screamed as his skin and hair caught fire.

“Ahhh...! You...! You...!”

Father Mateo lunged at Isabelle, and she collapsed to the floor, her knees giving way from the force of his fierce momentum. She tried to scoot away, but her back touched the wall.

This is it. Isabelle shut her eyes tightly.

“Ack...!” The priest screamed in pain. A slashing sound echoed in the room, and then his body dropped to the floor with a thud.

Before Isabelle could open her eyes to check what had happened, the sound of two unfamiliar voices made her flinch.

“Don’t open your eyes yet. His body melted. It’s a disgusting sight.”

“We’ll clean it up, so please wait.”

Once the two had finished talking, she heard no more sounds. She was relieved that they had saved her, but it felt like she was in a bigger crisis now.

I’ll just take a peek. Isabelle opened her eyes slightly and was immediately greeted by a ghastly sight. Blood was splattered across the floor and walls, and reapers, envoys of the Underworld, were cleaning it up.

They’re reapers.

It then dawned on Isabelle that things had gone terribly wrong. House Cardiego used the power of the Underworld, and reapers served as its messengers. She had just escaped Father Mateo’s clutches, and now she was in danger of getting caught again, this time by Duke Cardiego’s underlings. Being surrounded by reapers meant one of two things. Either her time on earth was up, or the monstrous Duke Cardiego had sent them to capture her. Isabelle was at a loss.

Despite the fact that her mind had become corrupted by the scandalous novels she had been reading, the first thing that sprang to mind when she was in peril was the goddess. She began to pray silently with her eyes slightly open.

Goddess Iris, please hear my prayer...

Just then, a reaper popped into view. Isabelle tensed up and became so frightened that she couldn’t even scream.

“Miss, please refrain from praying to the earthly goddess. It makes our skin itch because we’re from the Underworld.”

“Oh...” Isabelle nodded the best she could, with her vision blurring. When they realized that the tears in her sky-blue eyes were due to fear, the reapers grew pale.

Duke Cardiego considered the reapers his most elite troops, yet he was too lazy to even remember their names. All reapers received pretty names when they entered the Underworld, but the duke merely called them by their first syllables, such as Al for Alpha and Be for Beta.

He utters all three syllables of her name whenever he calls her. If he finds out we made her cry, we’ll be in deep trouble.

If Duke Cardiego heard that the people he referred to by the first syllable of their name for his convenience had made the woman whom he called by her full name sad, it was obvious what would happen. They would get flogged to death in the name of training. Reapers were immortal, so “until death” meant eternity for them.

What’s going on?

Isabelle stared blankly at the reapers, who were now shivering in fear. They immediately smiled brightly when they became aware of her gaze on them. She did not know that reapers could smile, and this, in turn, made her think the end was near.

“Is there something you wish to say, my lady...?”

They were asking for her last words now. It seemed like she was really going to die soon. Isabelle wiped away the tears streaming down her face with the back of her hand. It had been a particularly tiring day, but she hadn’t expected it to end this way. At the thought of dying, Isabelle suddenly missed Sister Maria, who had been like a mother to her. The urge to see her friends who had been sold somewhere and the saints who would return from the neighboring town in a few days also rose within her. However, there was one particular face that vividly came to mind.

“I miss Lix. Please... let me see him one last time.”

Lix?

When the reapers realized she was referring to Duke Cardiego, they hastily began to appease her.

“Miss, we’re not that evil.”

“Please just wait for a while. We’ll escort you to Cardiego Castle as soon as possible.”

“Cardiego... Castle?”

It has come to this.

With that, Isabelle fell unconscious.

The reapers, upon recalling the duke’s angry face, also felt like collapsing.

***

It was well past midnight, but Lix was still in his office. The situation with Isabelle weighed on him, making it impossible for sleep to find him. He had dispatched reapers instead of regular assassins, so why hadn’t he heard anything from them yet?

Did something happen?

Patience was the pride of House Cardiego’s lineage. Emperors had been selected from House Pilsburg for the past 350 years, but the leaders of House Cardiego had gritted their teeth and persevered like predators waiting for the moment to pounce on their prey. Finally, after centuries of patience, Ephelix Cardiego became the most viable contender for the emperor seat—a victory for House Cardiego.

Why haven’t I heard from them?

At the moment, however, Lix was anything but patient. He was barely restraining himself from running to the temple.

I sent reapers, why isn’t there news yet?

He fiddled with the necklace that Isabelle had given him as a wedding gift. Unable to wait any longer, he flicked his finger. Like ink, dark energy spread into the air.

“Al, report.”

There was no warmth in Lix’s voice.

Al, the reaper who was forcefully summoned from the temple, hesitated for a second before bowing his head apologetically.

“W-we’re sorry for the late report, Your Highness. As ordered, we took care of Father Mateo. However...”

“However?”

“By the time we got there, he was already half dead due to her magic.”

Lix’s eyebrows furrowed. If Isabelle had to resort to magic, it meant that something terrible had happened.

“I know your leader is gone but isn’t this unusually careless on your part?”

“W-well... It’s because someone got there before us.”

An intruder? Anger cast dark shadows over Lix’s face.

“That frail—”

He stopped himself before he could say more. He could not label Isabelle as frail even as a joke. In any case, she must have been really shocked.

“Tell me the current situation.”

“We’ve completely secured the safety of the lady. The saints visiting the nearby village are also planning to return to the temple as soon as possible. We’ve set up a pursuit team, so it won’t take long before we identify the intruders.”

Lix had been intending to bring Isabelle to the castle the day after tomorrow, but he changed his mind at that moment.

I’ll go tomorrow and bring her here.

Despite having made up his mind, he still wasn’t completely at ease. Al raised his head and snuck a glance at his master who was evidently debating whether to kill the reapers now or later.

I’ll be in bigger trouble if I hide this.

Al dithered for a moment before pulling out a piece of paper from his pocket. They had found it while exploring the temple. It contained indecipherable words, so it must have been the intruders who dropped it.

“Your Highness, we found this, but we couldn’t figure out what was written on it.”

Lix stopped glaring at Al, scanned the paper, and instantly relaxed. It wasn’t actually a secret code, but the phrase scrawled on the paper—which showcased Isabelle’s free-spirited nature—gave the impression of one.

Lix, I’ll make sure you get three meals a day, so don’t worry.

Lix covered his mouth to hide his grin.

He had no idea why Isabelle had written the note, but he was glad to learn that she had been thinking of him. It was adorable how she claimed she would ensure he had three meals a day despite her not having a job and him being a duke.

“Al, who found this note?”

“Del did.”

“After the ceremony, the reapers will receive punishment except for Del. He’ll be rewarded with a vacation instead.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Al did not know that reapers could get vacations. He had been a reaper for 186 years, but he hadn’t heard of such a thing before. Stunned, the reaper blinked.

Lix stared at the paper for what seemed like an eternity, as if memorizing the words written on it, before adding lightheartedly, “He can go on vacation for ten days. I’ll cover the expenses.”

Al was too dumbfounded to respond.

Lix motioned for him to leave and then pulled a thick file out of his desk drawer. It was a wedding checklist he had made himself.

She has too many requests.

Considering that Isabelle spent most of her time in the temple’s attic, it was impressive that she knew so much about love.

She had very specific preferences when it came to her marriage proposal, wedding dress, and new home, where she would move into with her spouse.

Lix wanted to fulfill as many of her wishes as he could.

I’m the only one who can do all these things for you. That’s why you have to be with me.

Lix let out a quiet sigh as he reviewed the checklist, having reached a satisfying conclusion. However, he was still worried about Isabelle. Despite the reassurance from the reapers that they had ensured her safety, he remained uneasy.

Should I drop by early in the morning while she sleeps?

He also wanted to see what the intruders had left behind. If he could figure out who those scoundrels were, that would be fantastic. The reapers still had no idea why they broke into the temple, but Lix already had a hunch. It was the only reason he could think of.